Wisconsin Bankers Advance Agenda in WashingtonWBA Executive Letter March 31, 2015Nearly thirty bankers traveled to Washington D.C. last week as part of the WBA Washington Conference which was held in conjunction with the ABA GR Summit. Badger State Bankers met with...

Dane County home buyer education classes see drop in participationWBA Banker News Clips for March 31, 2015Attendance at local first-time homebuyer education classes declined significantly last year, with nearly 25 percent fewer people participating, or 22 percent fewer households, compared with 2013 attendance, according to an annual report for the...

US economic growth may be mild, but it's also really durableWBA Banker News Clips for March 30, 2015The U.S. economy's tepid performance last quarter was typical of the economic rebound that began in the summer of 2009. Yet the sluggish pace of the recovery has a silver lining: This growth spurt has proved to be one of the most durable since...

Workforce agencies creating plan for Wells Fargo workersWBA Banker News Clips for March 27, 2015The Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development and the Milwaukee Area Workforce Investment Board this morning met to form a plan to help the 1,000 Milwaukee workers Wells Fargo & Co. will lay off in July. San Francisco-based Wells Fargo...

Man killed before Wis. trooper shooting ID'dWBA Banker News Clips for March 26, 2015Trooper Trevor Casper, 21, of Kiel, was pursuing Steven Timothy Snyder around 5:30 p.m. CT in Fond du Lac. Snyder was suspected of robbing a bank in the small Marinette County village of Wausaukee earlier in the day, and may have also fatally...

Compliance JournalMarch 2015Read “Judicial Spotlight” for an overview of important court decisions regarding MLO compensation, Wisconsin’s notice/prejudice statutes, the sale of abandoned property and the forfeiture of previously collected fees by an unlicensed adjustment...

'Home equity' no longer an oxymoronWBA Banker News Clips for March 25, 2015Latest numbers show home equity lines of credit making a modest comeback. With home prices slowly increasing, consumer confidence rising and interest rates still low, home equity lines of credit are making a modest comeback in Wisconsin.

On campaign trail, Scott Walker kick-starts Regular Joe imageWBA Banker News Clips for March 23, 2015Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker leapt toward the front of the GOP presidential field in recent weeks in part by veering to the right on issues like immigration and talking tough about everything from unions to the Middle East. But what's also...

Facebook's free mobile payment app could shake up the marketWBA Banker News Clips for March 20, 2015Smartphone apps that transfer money between users aren't new, but now that Facebook has entered the market, people are likely to pay more attention. The social media giant announced recently that it was adding a payment system to its Messenger...

Fed: No rate hike until job market improves, inflation risesWBA Banker News Clips for March 19, 2015The Federal Reserve signaled March 18 that it needs to see further improvement in the job market and higher inflation before it raises interest rates from record lows. At the same time, the Fed at least opened the door to a rate increase later...

Spring Cleaning for Your FinancesWBA Consumer Column for March 19, 2015Spring is finally here! That means it's time to open up the windows, sweep out the garage, and do some spring cleaning. As you create your cleaning list of what needs dusting off and organizing, don't forget your finances. Not only does it help...